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Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton. Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

NFL world reacts to brutal offsides call, wiping out Broncos TD

By Mike Santa Barbara | Last updated 12/17/23

Offensive offsides penalties are here to stay, or so it seems.

Once an infraction that was rarely, if ever, called, it's evidently become a point of emphasis for NFL officials. That notion was on full display Saturday during the Detroit Lions-Denver Broncos contest.

Late in the third quarter, the officials ruled that the Broncos' offensive lineman Quinn Meinerz was offsides, wiping out a one-yard touchdown by fullback Michael Burton on fourth down.

Denver ultimately had to settle for a field goal, but replays showed nothing out of the ordinary, leading to an uproar from the NFL world.

The Broncos were called for offensive offsides, wiping out a TD on 4th-and-goal.

Sean Payton was livid at the officials... and Denver QB Russell Wilson.

"Well, there is a very animated discussion. I'd say it's a one-sided discussion with his quarterback." - Kevin Harlan pic.twitter.com/k9KKcoSain
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 17, 2023

Wow that was a crazy last play. Miners wasn’t offsides. Awful call. Sean P goes nuts on the refs and Russ. I think you still have to go for it from the 6. What does a FG do? Still down three scores and your defense isn’t playing good. What do you think #BroncosCountry
— Brandon Stokley (@bstokley14) December 17, 2023

I've looked at this replay about five times and I legitimately can't figure out who was allegedly offside.
— Benjamin Allbright (@AllbrightNFL) December 17, 2023

Just what we wanted: more tedious penalties affecting the game result!

(this “offensive offsides” movement can end now…)
— Mike Clay (@MikeClayNFL) December 17, 2023

Who was offsides ?
— shannon sharpe (@ShannonSharpe) December 17, 2023

The sequence of events also angered Broncos head coach Sean Payton, who was livid with officials and his quarterback, Russell Wilson.

The Broncos aren't the first, or seemingly the last, to suffer the wrath of an offensive offside call. However, the timing of the latest questionable flag is interesting.

Only hours before the Broncos-Lions game, the NFL dropped the hammer on Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

The league fined them $100K and $50K respectively for publicly criticizing officials following an offensive offsides penalty in Week 14, which cost them a win over the Buffalo Bills. However, therein lies the ever-growing problem for the NFL.

The play in question saw wideout Kadarius Toney clearly line up offsides, meaning they didn't justify the outcry from Reid and Mahomes.

Yet, when watching the call from Saturday, it's hard to understand what officials were seeing and why they decided to throw the flag.

Refs aren't perfect, but inconsistency surrounding an already controversial penalty will eventually upset more teams other than the Chiefs and Broncos.

For a league all too familiar with rule confusion, the NFL would be wise to solve the issues regarding the offsides penalty before it gets out of control, costing a team a playoff game or worse.

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